When a computer or server in a computer room or data center fails (or “crashes”), the server often cannot be diagnosed remotely; after all, the server's communication systems may be failing as well. A failing server is thus best diagnosed by physically bringing computer diagnostic equipment to the troubled server. In a data center, the equipment used to diagnose and fix the crashing server is often found on a rolling cart that can be rolled to the server requiring attention. Such carts are usually stored in data centers for when they are needed by such users as system administrators.
Data center rolling carts with diagnostic equipment can vary but generally have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse thereon. If a web server were to go down, the systems administrator could roll the cart to the data center cabinet holding the troubled web server. He or she would then assemble the equipment and hook up the monitor, keyboard, and mouse, to the server to begin troubleshooting the web server.
There are many shortcomings with using rolling carts in data centers for troubleshooting purposes. For one, they can be quite large and cumbersome to push around the data center. Because space is limited in data centers, data center cabinet aisles are usually quite tight, with just enough room for the cabinet doors to open. Trying to push a cart down an aisle and then maneuver around aisles, cabinets, open doors, and other data center personnel can become a challenge. Also, because of their size, it is usually not feasible to move a data center cart from one data center to another. Businesses with more than one data center would thus need to have rolling carts with diagnostic equipment in each of their data centers, raising costs.
Moreover, rolling carts with diagnostic equipment tend to be communal resources in data centers. If a business has multiple business units within one data center, all business units would likely share the same rolling carts, creating competition for the carts. As shared resources, they are generally not the responsibility of any single individual, making it difficult to ensure the proper care and maintenance of the carts. These rolling carts are highly susceptible to being disorganized and poorly maintained. If the rolling carts are unavailable, not returned to their proper place, or left in a state of disarray (for example, with cables/equipment missing, equipment malfunctioning, littered with trash, etc.), diagnosing and fixing the server can be considerably delayed, increasing the downtime of troubled servers. This is particularly troublesome when a mission-critical server must urgently be brought back online. Field technicians frequently run into this problem as well when visiting a client's data center. A technician that relies on the customer's carts can find himself or herself with the daunting task of finding one that is not being used and returning it to a usable state. Such lost time and server downtime quickly adds up and can be very costly.
Placing computer equipment in a conventional bag, such as a piece of luggage or a computer bag, does not overcome the shortcomings of rolling diagnostic carts. The equipment available in a bag is entirely dependent on the equipment that was left in the bag by the bag's most recent user. If a user does not pack or replace an input device or power adaptor, for example, the equipment in the bag may not be usable, and it takes time to inspect the contents of a bag before each use. Also, the equipment and accessories in the bag may be left in disarray. Even if the bag includes compartments that are sized to fit different accessories, there is no guarantee that the bag's last user will take the time necessary to organize the equipment. As such, the bag's next user might have to waste time digging through all of the bag's compartments to locate a desired device (assuming the needed equipment is somewhere to be found in the bag). Because such bags are intended for storage, equipment stored therein is usually not connected and ready to use. For example, components may be disconnected from each other, cords may be tangled, and accessories may be incompatible with each other. Further, even when a user arrives at a failing computer with a computer bag that includes all the needed equipment, he or she must unpack the separate pieces of equipment, assemble them, connect them with the server equipment, disassemble them when done, and repack them within the bag so that they are available in ready-to-use form for next time. These steps are inconvenient and time consuming, and prone to shortcuts that make it more difficult for subsequent users. Furthermore, these bags are not stably hangable for use in such settings as data centers.
What is needed is a mobile diagnostics module that is well suited for computer data centers.